Official Review: Things to Do in Baltimore While Having a...

[Camille Turner]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Things to Do in Baltimore While Having a Heart Attack" by Isaac Green.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Isaac Green’s Things to Do in Baltimore While Having a Heart Attack is a collection of nine short stories, five of which focus on the same characters and four of which function independently. The continuous stories feature middle-aged Alex, a pessimistic divorcé who works at a construction firm in Baltimore. The initial story begins with Alex relentlessly searching for a girl’s phone number, which leads him to his ex-wife’s house, and ends with Alex having a heart attack on the street. Each of the following stories about Alex picks up where the last one leaves off, chronicling the events of the year following his heart attack, which include many ups and downs, some humorous and some horrific.

As for the four independent stories, the first, entitled “Hero of Main Street,” is a short piece about an unlikely character who stops a bank robbery. The second, “The Caregiver,” takes place in the future when synthetic caregivers are being leased out to the older population. The last two, “The Guardians of Summar’s Point” and “The Story Quilt,” are my favorite of the independent stories, and both of them have supernatural elements that have been discreetly woven into the plot. The former follows the story of Jack, a former land surveyor turned lawyer, as he becomes involved in a particularly difficult land dispute case. The latter features Mike, an advertiser in Baltimore, as he discovers a strange story quilt in his newly acquired West Virginia cabin. Shortly after this discovery, he finds that he cannot sleep without the quilt, and the events of his life begin to reflect the images woven into it.

I enjoyed reading these stories and think that Green has a knack for creating interesting, vivid characters, even if some of them are deplorable. I believe that his main character, Alex, is particularly interesting because while selfish and crass, I still found scenes in which I sided with him over the other characters and in which I felt empathy for him. One of the best things about the collection is that Green doesn’t shy away from brutal honesty and frankness when it comes to his characters and the situations in which they find themselves. Furthermore, among the various tragedies throughout the stories, there is still an element of humor, albeit a bit dark, which I personally liked very much.

I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars, deducting one star because there are just so many grammatical errors and typos. At one point, I noticed a repeated sentence that was accidentally included, and oftentimes, characters’ names were misspelled (or the way in which they were spelled changed). There was also the added trouble of frequent tense changes and plenty of various grammatical errors like “I had to walk to the house from nearly a blocks” (pg 48) and “I hesitate, then I said her part of the truth” (pg 36). This held up the reading process quite a bit, and I think if the book was professionally edited, it would make a ton of positive difference.

As for whom this book appeals, I believe those who like everyday stories featuring flawed characters will enjoy the collection. Readers should be okay with the occasional explicit scene and not shy away from darker humor and events. While I thought the first two independent short stories could’ve used a little more development, I thoroughly enjoyed the latter two and loved the five cohesive stories about Alex. If you can overlook the errors within the collection, I recommend Things to do in Baltimore While Having a Heart Attack for those looking for new short stories to add to their reading lists.

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Moderator's Note: The reviewer read a pre-edit advanced review copy. The book was later professionally edited prior to publication.
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Things to Do in Baltimore While Having a Heart Attack
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[writer808]

The title grabbed my attention, i could not resist myself from reading the review.I can not wait to read this book.

[Camille Turner]

The title grabbed my attention, i could not resist myself from reading the review.I can not wait to read this book.

Great! I hope you enjoy the book!

[Manang Muyang]

The book title is a real attention-grabber, and I am a fan of short stories. So this book interests me. I hope the author cleans it up soon.

Thanks for the insightful review!

[Camille Turner]

The book title is a real attention-grabber, and I am a fan of short stories. So this book interests me. I hope the author cleans it up soon.

Thanks for the insightful review!

It was quite interesting, and, as you say, just needs a good edit!

[kandscreeley]

The dark humor and explicit scenes would probably turn me off to this novel. However, I do like the thought of the flawed characters. Realistic characters make the best protagonists in my mind. It's too bad about the editorial errors, but it does sound like this has appeal to its intended audience. I just don't think I'm that audience.

[Camille Turner]

The dark humor and explicit scenes would probably turn me off to this novel. However, I do like the thought of the flawed characters. Realistic characters make the best protagonists in my mind. It's too bad about the editorial errors, but it does sound like this has appeal to its intended audience. I just don't think I'm that audience.

Fair enough! I do like dark humor (if done correctly), but I just hate when something is littered with mistakes. It's such an easy fix. Thanks for reading and commenting!

[fredrick otieno]

what a collection, its hard to resist such, especially when one story acts as a sequel of the other.

[Camille Turner]

what a collection, its hard to resist such, especially when one story acts as a sequel of the other.

Yes, it certainly makes you keep on reading. Thanks for commenting!

[Debjani Ghosh]

I am a fan of short stories and the title grabbed my attention. Based on your review, it seems that the author has crafted entertaining tales worth reading. It's a pity that there are so many grammatical errors which detract from the reading experience. Thanks for the candid review.

[Camille Turner]

I am a fan of short stories and the title grabbed my attention. Based on your review, it seems that the author has crafted entertaining tales worth reading. It's a pity that there are so many grammatical errors which detract from the reading experience. Thanks for the candid review.

Thanks for reading my review and leaving a comment! I agree that the title immediately grabs your attention. If only the book had been thoroughly edited, it would've been excellent.

[Espie]

It seems like the main character has an eventful and colourful life. I do hope the flaws are corrected, though, just as you've described. Thank you for a well-written review.